"The Party organization is playing a great role in companies and its members are always the advanced workers of any team. I believe enterprise has the responsibility to generate profit, and more importantly, repay society and serve people, and this is what the Communist Party of China is doing in the country," said Delegate Sun Chongren, the Party chief in charge of the Liaohe Petroleum of the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

Sun told China.org.cn that the growth of the economy, along with improvements in industrial capacity and cultural integration have all wrought vast changes in terms of traditional corporate values, thus making enterprises more aware of their social responsibilities.

"On the one hand, enterprises around the world are going global in terms of production and resource allocation, while on the other hand, global cooperation among enterprises is taking on a more complex outlook, creating a huge value chain."

He said: "Corporate social responsibility also forms part of the cultural sphere and stands as a crucial part of modern entrepreneurship. It enhances an enterprise's corporate value. Caring about natural resources, our environment, labor rights and interests, business ethics and instilling the concept of responsibility into stakeholders have now become commonplace among Chinese enterprises."

"For China, to issue a clarion call for its corporate citizens to bear the load of their social responsibilities will not only help the national economy blossom but also help its integration into the global family," he explained.

This responsibility is seen as being tied into company profits, making those enterprises with a higher sense of responsibility better equipped to sustain their profits and develop their brands.

Though China must still improve such areas as enterprise governance, information publicity and public investment, it is encouraging that investment in fulfilling social responsibilities is already taking place.

He told China.org.cn: "Because I'm from a petroleum company, for my own work, our main task is to improve energy, resources and environmental conservation."

His company has implemented the responsibility system for conserving energy and reducing emissions.

"The Party should improve policies to promote energy, resources, and environmental conservation, and speed up the formation of any other systems and mechanisms for sustainable development," he stressed.

(China.org.cn by staff reporter Wang Ke, October 19, 2007)